Press Release

Key Education Provisions in the COVID-19 Response Package

The COVID-19 response package passed last night includes a variety of education provisions. In a new analysis, AAF’s Data and Policy Analyst Tom Lee examines the provisions providing additional school funding and temporary student debt payment relief as well as the changes simplifying the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and Pell Grants.

His central points:

  • Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), states will receive $54 billion in relief funding to disburse to school districts, in addition to the $13.2 billion in relief funding allocated under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act;
  • Colleges and universities will receive up to $22 billion in addition to the $14 billion allocated under the CARES Act;
  • The CAA does not contain any student debt forgiveness or deferral provisions, meaning student debt holders will have to resume payment in February 2021; and
  • The government-funding part of the CAA includes FAFSA and Pell Grant simplification, which could make financial aid easier to access for millions of students.

Read the analysis.

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